Pink ball makes debut in England

A pink cricket ball made its competitive debut in England on Wednesday when Hampshire beat Essex in a floodlit Twenty20 fixture.

The match, staged at Hampshire's Rose Bowl, was the first time a match between two English counties had used the luminous ball which is being tested by the MCC, the traditional guardians of the laws of cricket.

In April, the MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) used the pink ball in a match against Scotland at Lord's and they have been working in tandem with the ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) on expanding its use to county matches.

The main argument for pink balls is that the white ones used for one-day matches are liable to become discoloured and difficult for players to see in certain conditions.

Hampshire won the match by seven wickets and the pink ball received a mixed reaction from the players.

"I found it a bit difficult to follow when it was hit along the ground," Essex batsman Graham Napier told Sky Sports. "When it got above head height it was better."

Essex first team coach Paul Grayson said the pink ball could have a future in the game.

"We are all open to change and variation in the game," he told the Essex cricket website (www.essexcricket.org.uk). "Using pink balls is certainly worth looking at for one-day cricket.

"We'll know a bit more about the viability of themonec we've got a bit of feedback from the players."

The first trial of the pink ball took place in Brisbane in January in a women's match between Queensland and Western Australia.